Rediscovering Themselves
by PhinalPhantasy
Summary: CHAPTER 5 FINALLY UP! Soon after the defeat of Cell and Bojack, 18 finds herself bored, wondering what to do with herself. Thinking of no one else who would be willing to talk to her, she turns to Krillin who is dealing with some issues of his own. K/18
1. Prologue

**Dragonball Z: Rediscovering Themselves**

**By: PhinalPhantasy**

**Prologue**

(A/N: This is a story idea that's been in my head for a while and I'm glad to start writing on it finally. This is my first DBZ fic so I hope I do well. This story is dedicated to my good friend Krillin Fan.)

(Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or its characters. They belong to Toriyama-sensei)

Eighteen was bored. There was no other way to describe it. Eighteen thought that she and her brother, Seventeen, and their friend Sixteen would just roam the earth doing as they will for the rest of their lives, which would probably be forever. Unfortunately Seventeen beheaded their "father," Dr. Gero before that question could be asked. So now, here she was, flying aimlessly through the air, not even sure if she was immortal, and definitely not sure what she wanted to do with herself. She was created and programmed to be a one-woman weapon of mass destruction and initially she enjoyed it, causing chaos and mayhem and to do so unopposed. Now however, her initial programming no longer appealed to her, the desire to cause destruction for the fun of it had been completely reversed by recent events in her short life. More specifically, three people in her life:

First it was Sixteen. Besides his programming to kill Goku, he really had no desire to destroy anything. On the contrary, the big guy actually _loved_ the world and all the life in it. It was unfortunate, but Eighteen had yet to find out what happened to him. Reflecting on the short time she knew him, she had to admit, she admired the gentle giant. He showed how even an artificial lifeform can try to find their way in the world. The problem is what her path will be now…

Next was Cell, that horrifying creature that was the ultimate creation of her "father," Dr. Gero. It could've been considered divine justice by some, what had happened to her because of that beast. Eighteen and her brother enjoyed spreading terror because to them, it was fun. No one could stop them. Not Goku, or his friends…that all changed when something _worse_ than them came along. Cell was even more sadistic than the android twins and considered terrorizing them just as enjoyable as terrorizing the rest of the world's inhabitants…maybe even more so. He didn't kill his victims quickly. He did it in the slow and painful process of liquefying their bodies and sucking them through his tail's needle-like tip, all for the purpose of increasing his power. When it came to Seventeen and Eighteen, the absorption process was more…personal. Instead of being pierced by the needle at the end of Cell's tail, the opening to it widened and they were "swallowed" by him…alive…and just so he can reach his goal of perfection. Seeing her brother go through the process was the second most horrific experience of Eighteen's life. The first…was experiencing it for herself. Even though Cell was destroyed for good, Eighteen still had nightmares about what it was like, being absorbed by and being a part of that monster. After a really hard blow to his stomach from Gohan, Cell regurgitated her and although it was one of the other most disgusting experiences of her life, Eighteen was relieved to be free of that monster. However that didn't mean she was foolish enough to express her gratitude to the young Half-Saiyan and his friends, they most likely still considered her an enemy and would try to kill her on sight…well…all but one…

And he was the third person that has been seriously plaguing Eighteen's mind. The little oddball among Goku's friends. Krillin. He didn't frighten Eighteen at all, but his behavior towards her was very puzzling and it was a mystery even her advanced android brain couldn't deduce. Here she was, someone who was created to kill Krillin's _best friend_ and any of his other friends that got in her way, yet when he had the chance to destroy her, ending the threat to the world from both her and Cell simultaneously in just the simple action of pressing a button on a remote control, he refused to do it. He had actually _destroyed_ the remote in front of her and desired to actually _protect_ her from Cell. The fact that Krillin's efforts to do so failed didn't change Eighteen's confusion over the matter. The point was Krillin was very different from his friends and that's what has been bugging Eighteen. The "why" behind his actions towards her. Maybe it was that kiss she gave him on a whim, but that was ridiculous! That gesture didn't change the fact that they were enemies. If he thought otherwise, he was a fool. Eighteen supposed the easiest thing to do was to find him and ask him directly, but the problem was getting him alone. If any of his friends found her, Eighteen would most likely be fighting for her life. Just then the android heard loud cheers coming from below her. Startled in the interruption of her thoughts, the android descended from where she was flying and to her surprise, no one noticed this beautiful blonde woman coming from the sky. Instead their attention was on a jumbo television on the side of a building where the words "MR. SATAN DOES IT AGAIN!" were flashing along with a picture of the ridiculous man doing his victory pose.

"What on earth happened?" Eighteen asked a nearby young man.

"Haven't you been watching? The world was in trouble again and Mr. Satan saved us all. Just like when he stopped Cell!"

"The world was in trouble again?" Eighteen asked again.

"Where have you been? Some weird blue-skinned gang that claimed to be aliens came to the World Tournament. They trashed the place and the city around it. Those guys who fought Cell were there too. They tried to stop these new bad guys, and fought with their fancy tricks, but all they could do was hold them off until Mr. Satan's arrival. Those guys who fought first are good, but Mr. Satan is the champ! He took care of business!"

Eighteen had no idea about half of what this guy was saying, but one important detail stood out in the android's mind, "The guys who fought Cell. You're absolutely sure they were there?" Eighteen asked urgently.

"Oh yeah. I'm sure of it!" the bystander said.

"Was there a short guy there? Bald?" Eighteen inquired.

"Oh man. Yeah the poor guy was there alright. He got his butt handed to him on a silver platter! He's probably in the ICU after what he went through."

"I must find him," Eighteen said to herself. It was the chance she was looking for.

"Are you a friend of his?" the stranger asked.

"Huh? Oh. No. Just want to talk to him."

"Umm…okay…I guess you can try East City's ICU. It was the nearest hospital not wrecked by those villains."

Without another word, Eighteen took off into the sky again, heading towards East City.

"Whoa!" the bystander was speechless, "Guess their fancy tricks may have something to them…" then he shouted at Eighteen, "Least you could do is say 'thank you!'" but of course he got no reply. Eighteen was already focused on her next goal…

(A/N: I hope that this is a good start and that you are all intrigued. Next chapter, we get a little self examination from Krillin's POV before a beautiful visitor interrupts. I hope you look forward to it.)


	2. Bedside Manner

**Dragonball Z: Rediscovering Themselves**

**By: PhinalPhantasy**

**Chapter 1: Bedside Manner**

(A/N: Well, after much thought, I decided to re-title this fic. My original one sounded like it would be a comedy and this story is primarily going to be about Krillin and Eighteen bonding.)

(Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or its characters. They belong to Toriyama-sensei)

**The story so far: Android Eighteen was wandering aimlessly through the world, bored and without purpose in her life. With her thoughts as her only companion, she reflects on her brief existence to this point, and the one person who plagues her mind constantly is Krillin. She coincidently came across news of Bojack's defeat and also found out that the one person she has been thinking of is most likely hospitialized, so she turns her search to the hospital to find answers…**

"Well, this is it…I'm the only one left here," Krillin thought to himself as he lay in the hospital bed. Gohan and Trunks, due to their Saiyan heritage, healed remarkably quickly and were discharged form the hospital after only a few days versus the week Krillin had to spend here with a broken arm and leg. He enjoyed the company of his young friends while they were all cooped up with him of course, and they liked the time they spent with him, but as soon as they healed up, they left. Gohan at his mother's insistence to make up for the schoolwork he's been missing lately, and Trunks said a final farewell to everyone (Bulma was teary-eyed of course, and Vegeta just harrumphed) before returning to his own time for the last time.

Now however, Krillin was starting to feel lonely with his friends gone. Gohan was too busy with his home schooling, Bulma was too busy taking care of Trunks (the baby version); Tien and Chiaotzu disappeared to who-knew-where; Roshi, Oolong, and Yamcha were busy hitting the single bars lately; and Piccolo was still upset with him, or disappointed was more like it.

It was funny how someone who was once one of his worst enemies was now one of his closer friends, but recently, Krillin wondered if that was still the case. While in recovery, he had asked the Namekian for a senzu bean, but Piccolo refused, "You didn't earn one," he simply said. Now that he was alone with his thoughts, Krillin reluctantly had to agree.

He didn't know why, for sure, whether it was the fact that Goku's death was still fresh in his mind, or if it was how powerful both Piccolo and the Saiyans had gotten lately, or a combination of both, but somewhere in his recent memory, Krillin had stopped trying.

It was during the World Tournament, right after the Cell Games. He and the other Z-Fighters (minus Vegeta) had entered it for some friendly competition with each other. Krillin should've known better, but once he saw that Gohan, Piccolo, and Trunks had entered, Krillin had lost his nerve, and it wasn't even a life-or-death situation…not at that point at least. When he had the chance to challenge Piccolo to a friendly bout, Krillin completely chickened out and his Namekian friend was so disappointed with him, he told him that he was looking forward to fighting someone with heart, then left the arena in disgust, forfeiting the match to the short human, who now, looking back on that moment, felt even smaller than when he was a kid, especially since he had the nerve to actually _brag_ about defeating Piccolo to that beautiful blue-skinned and orange-haired woman…the poor girl. Sure she was part of Bojack's gang and tried to kill him and his friends, but she didn't deserve to go down like that, being used as a human shield by her boss. Krillin wished he could've saved her, but at the time he was in no condition to help anyone and after Gohan had reached Super Saiyan 2, everything was happening too fast to do anything but watch anyways. It's just that she was so darn cute, he wanted to save her. It may have made up for his earlier cowardice that day…no. Scratch that. It would've made up for his earlier failure to save _her_…Android 18. That was the _real_ reason he wanted to save Bojack's henchwoman. She reminded Krillin of the beautiful android. Heck, if it wasn't for the fact that she had blue skin, pointy ears, and a _lot_ of orange hair, the lovely alien and android could have been mistaken for sisters. Maybe that's when he really started to feel down. When he tried to save Eighteen from being absorbed by Cell, but failed. He decided he wouldn't kill the android with that remote, because he had started to have feelings for her all because of a silly little peck on the cheek. That one event was responsible for all of his current misery in a way. If it wasn't for that kiss, Krillin wondered if he really would've pressed that button. If he didn't, Goku would be alive and everyone would be happy, himself included. But Krillin would never blame Eighteen for any of this. That would be completely unfair. Besides, no one has seen the android since they defeated Cell. On second thought, Krillin thought that he would've destroyed that remote, kiss or no kiss, cause it was the right thing to do.

"Android 18," Krillin whispered, thinking of the elusive woman, tears coming to his eyes thinking about all that was troubling him.

"How'd you know I was here?" came a voice from just outside the window, startling Krillin, causing the little guy to stumble out of bed.

"Yeouch!" he screamed and then climbed back into his bed. He looked at the window and sure enough, the beautiful Eighteen was floating just outside with a bit of a scowl decorating her flawless face, "Is that really you Eighteen?" Krillin asked.

"Yes it is. Now are you going to invite me in, or do I have to break through the window," Eighteen demanded.

"Umm…I'm a little incapacitated at the moment, but the window is unlocked. You could easily lift it open and squeeze inside," Krillin replied. Shrugging, she managed to do as Krillin suggested and as she squeezed in, she had to hug herself and bend down a bit, unintentionally giving Krillin a rare but brief peek down her shirt, causing him to blush.

"What is it?" Eighteen asked, noticing his change in skin tone after she was at his side.

"Oh nothing nothing!" Krillin said, waving his good arm in front of him, "More importantly what are you doing here?" he asked.

Eighteen looked at Krillin sharply for a moment, but then noticed his tone sounded more curious than angry or scared like she expected, "I came here to see you Krillin," the android replied simply.

"Really? Why me?" Krillin asked a little cheerfully, _"Better not get my hopes up though," _he thought to himself.

"I heard what happened to you on the news…well sort of. Anyways I thought this would give us the chance to talk."

"_Of course, the battle against Bojack was at least partially televised,"_ Krillin thought. Out loud he said, "Well I've been here for a while. Why didn't you come earlier?"

"I wanted to see you alone," Eighteen replied, "I didn't want to run the risk of meeting up with your friends, knowing what they'd probably do to me." _"Funny," _she thought, _"I came here for answers and yet he's asking all the questions,"_ "So I've been observing this area quietly for the past several days, waiting for them to leave."

"_She's __scared__ of them,"_ Krillin realized, _"But not of me. Well I guess I can understand her fear of the others…at this point, if either Gohan or Vegeta or even Piccolo were to go all out, I'm not sure if she'd survive a fight with them…"_ "Okay. I promise I won't let them know you're here," Krillin smiled, hoping to reassure his impromptu guest.

"_Is he…smiling?"_ Eighteen observed, _"Strange…I actually __believe__ him. He really is different from the others."_ "So. On to why I'm here. There's been something that has been bugging me and only you can help me."

"Okay…I'll try my best to help…" Krillin responded.

"Why did you do it?" Eighteen said, "Why did you destroy the remote. It makes no sense to me. Using it would've been the smartest move you could've made. I would've died and Cell would've been weak enough for your friends to defeat without too much effort. All you did was made things harder on them and yourself by _not_ destroying me."

"Well…It was the right thing to do," Krillin responded. The android's eyes widened and she turned on him with anger

"What? That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard! What is so 'right' about saving your enemy and putting the world at greater risk by doing so?" Eighteen fumed, _"Why did I even bother coming here? He really is a fool, but I'm even __more__ foolish for thinking he'd give me a smart answer."_ "I guess I wasted my time here," she turned around to leave, but Krillin said something that she really didn't expect.

"I don't consider you an enemy," he said quickly, "Not anymore. Not since Cell was stalking you."

"What?" now the android more confused than ever, "Why? I don't understand. It's not like I've repented or made peace overtures or anything like that."

"Because I could tell. You experienced genuine fear for the first time," Krillin replied slowly, "I saw how afraid of that monster you were."

"Are you calling me a coward?" Eighteen said threateningly.

"No. It's just that Cell was an enemy that you really couldn't deal with. Don't feel bad though, myself and most of my friends, even the stronger ones, couldn't take him either. My point is, once Cell had his eye on you, you stopped being an enemy and become someone else who needed to be protected."

"And you thought that if you all defeated Cell and I survived, that all would be forgiven ad I'd be your new best friend?" Eighteen replied, "How ridiculous."

"Okay I'll admit it. Yes that's what I hoped. I mean look at some of the other Z-Fighters: Tien, Piccolo, and Vegeta. They all used to be the worst enemy of the rest of my friends at some point, but they're all among my friends that help protect the world now…well 'friend' is definitely a stretch in Vegeta's case…we really don't get along," Krillin chuckled nervously, "but I honestly hope you'll be the next one to join our ranks."

"I see…well thanks for your honesty…but don't hold your breath. I don't think your friends will like me, and I'm not sure I'll like them. And I'm not sure I'm interested in protecting the world. I've done a bit of…traveling in the past few days. Nothing I've seen impresses me. To tell you the truth, I'm bored with life and I don't know what to do anymore. Anyways, thanks for the talk, but I think I'm done here," Eighteen turned once again to leave, but then Krillin spoke up again.

"I have a crazy idea," Krillin chimed in again, "What you need is a vacation. A chance to get away from all that's bothering you."

"Maybe I didn't make myself clear," Eighteen said, "I have literally examined every inch of the earth. I can't see myself at the big vacation spots."

"So you're bored here on Earth," Krillin said lightly, "Fortunately, I have access to other options."

"What do you mean?" now Eighteen's curiosity was starting to peak.

"I mean that Bulma's built an interstellar spaceship! You want to get away from the earth, I can make it happen," Krillin smiled.

"You want me to go on a trip to outer space alone?" Eighteen asked.

"No…I want to come with you," Krillin smiled some more, "Besides, you'll need someone who knows how the ship works and where another world would be along with someone familiar of the dangers of space."

"You don't look like you're in any shape to deal with the 'dangers of space,'" Eighteen pointed out.

"Well…if you're willing to wait a few days until I heal up, I'll be willing to help you."

Eighteen looked up in thought, "Alright then, you have a deal. But where can I meet you?"

"Hmm…Let's say Kame House in a week. I'll be sure that no one else will be home."

"Alright, I'll be there," Eighteen said, "See you in a week."

"Then it's a promise," Krillin smiled. Eighteen simply nodded and left through the same window she entered, causing Krillin to blush again when he saw her pants hugging her bottom, _"Maybe this vacation is what I need to get out of my own rut. And this will be a chance to get to know Eighteen better. I can't wait."_ Krillin smiled.

(A/N: Well I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Next chapter, Krillin takes Eighteen to Bulma's place to ask to borrow the spaceship she owns. How will she react to Krillin's new companion?)


	3. Preparing for Departure

**Dragonball Z: Rediscovering Themselves**

**By: PhinalPhantasy**

**Chapter 2: Preparing for Departure**

(A/N: Sorry this took longer than I thought to update. I'll try to do better in the future and I hope that this chapter is worth the wait. It is longer than most of my chapters to make up for the long wait.)

(Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or its characters, just having fun writing about them.)

**The story so far: After nearly dying at the hands of Bojack's forces, Krillin was stuck in the hospital for several days alone, his other friends busy getting their lives together now that the world was at peace once again. Feeling disappointed in his actions, or lack thereof, since the death of Goku, which he felt responsible for, he was surprised to receive a visit from Android 18. She was seeking answers to why Krillin spared her. He tells her that he no longer considers her an enemy and seeing that they both have been having a hard time lately, suggests they go on a vacation together…in space.**

Krillin woke up feeling very refreshed. He was finally released from the hospital the morning before and it felt good to be home. He looked at his calendar and realized what day it was, _"It's the day Eighteen promised to be here! I've got to get Master Roshi and Oolong out of here before she shows up."_ Krillin quickly got dressed and went downstairs and saw his two roommates admiring their favorite exercise program.

"Morning guys," Krillin said in greeting.

"Hi Krillin," Oolong replied.

"Why don't you come and join us son," Roshi invited.

"Umm…no thanks," Krillin said. He honestly didn't know why they always tried to get him to watch that stuff, but hit didn't matter today. Dwelling on that wasn't helping; he had to think on how to get them out of the house. Then it came to him, "Hey guys," he said reaching into his walled, "Why don't you go out to eat breakfast on me." This caught their attention.

"Are you sure Krillin?" Roshi asked.

"Yeah you just got back. If anything we should be treating _you." _Oolong added.

"Well…I want to start on some…training on my own and would like the place to myself for a few hours," Krillin said.

"Well if you're sure," Roshi replied.

"Hurry up old man before he changes his mind!" Oolong insisted pushing Roshi off the couch.

"Alright, alright," Roshi replied, "Just don't tear up the place while we're gone," he told Krillin. In a few minutes they took off on an air car.

"Finally got rid of them," Krillin said stepping outside and looking out for his promised visitor. After a few minutes Krillin decided to start doing some training to kill time and to make what he said to his roommates the truth. He was getting ready to fire off a Kamehameha when he heard her voice.

"I'm here," Eighteen said. Krillin was startled and fired off more energy than he had intended, rocketing him backwards, the android instinctively caught him.

"Umm…hi Eighteen," Krillin said, slightly blushing from the contact. The android immediately dropped him with a hint of a smile.

"What…did you think that I wasn't going to show?" she asked.

"Umm…it's not that. I guess I'm an early riser," Krillin replied.

"Good, because I always keep my promises. It would make me look bad if I didn't," Eighteen replied, _"To be honest __I'm__ the one who's surprised that he's here as promised."_

"See you're not as bad as you try to make yourself out to be," Krillin smiled, "Although sneaking up on a guy while he's training isn't exactly the safest idea. I'm just glad I didn't accidentally blast you."

"Well then I guess you need to train harder to notice your surroundings," Eighteen replied.

"_Was that a __joke__?" _Krillin thought, not sure if he should voice it. Instead he said, "Are you ready to go?" he asked.

"Sure…I assume we're going to Capsule Corp.'s headquarters?" Eighteen said, "Do you know if anyone besides Bulma Briefs will be there?"

"I don't know about anyone else, but…I'm pretty sure that Vegeta will be," At this Eighteen actually turned pale. Seeing her fear, Krillin gave her his best smile, "I'll call ahead to make sure he won't notice us. You can come in if you'd like." Krillin walked in with Eighteen close behind. Then Krillin gestured to the refrigerator, "Help yourself to something to eat if you want," he said, "I'll be upstairs if you need anything." Eighteen nodded and watched as Krillin disappeared up the stairs.

Krillin was in his room, a small smile on his face as he sat on his bed and reached for his phone. He dialed Bulma's personal number and waited patiently, _"She's actually here and we're actually going on that trip!"_ he thought excitedly. Then a voice answered the phone.

"Sheesh Vegeta. You could answer the phone once in a while," Krillin heard Bulma say.

"Why should I? It's never for me anyways," Vegeta replied.

"Cause it'd be a big help that's why! Sheesh! Men!" Then she finally turned to answer her caller, "Yes Briefs residence."

"Hey Bulma!" Krillin replied cheerfully.

"Krillin! Good to hear from you! I heard you're finally out of the hospital. Everything okay?" Bulma replied.

"Yes. Everything's good. Things are starting to look up for me again."

"I'm glad to hear that," Bulma said, "So is this a social call or is there something I can do for you?"

"I would like to ask an odd favor. If Vegeta's not using his spaceship, I'd like to borrow it for a while."

"Wow that _is_ an odd request. Has something bad happened?"

"No nothing like that," Krillin replied, "I've come to the conclusion that I need a vacation and figured that a trip in outer space is the best way for me to get away from it all."

"No kidding! Are you sure you're okay? I mean even for someone as strong as you, a journey in space is extremely dangerous," Bulma said, sounding concerned.

"Thanks for worrying but it's not the first time I've been in space Bulma. I promise you I'll be careful and I promise that I'm not becoming reckless."

"Well…alright then," Bulma said, and then she turned to Vegeta, "Hey Vegeta, are you going to use the spaceship anytime soon?"

Vegeta laughed, "No. I learned a long time ago there's no escaping you." If Krillin didn't know any better, he could have sworn her heard _affection_ in the Saiyan's voice.

"Sound's like the ship's free," Bulma said, "Just come on over.

"Great Bulma. Just one more thing. Could you make sure Vegeta's distracted and doesn't notice me coming…I'm bringing a…friend with me and I don't want him to frighten her."

"_Her?" _Bulma's voice took a mischievous tone, _"Now_ I see where this is going. Trying to get a girl alone in space. It does sound romantic. Way to go! I'll do anything I can do to help as long as it's not that Maron chick. She was no good for you. Honestly."

"Oh don't worry Bulma. It's not Maron. I'm completely over her now," Krillin replied.

"Great I can't wait to meet your new girlfriend! See you in a few!"

Then it hit Krillin, "Bulma wait! She's not my…" but it was too late as his friend had hung up. He then decided to go downstairs and check on his guest. He saw something he didn't expect. The android had a bowl of chocolate chip ice cream and was spooning some into her mouth leaving behind a slight "mustache" on her upper lip, "Heh cute," Krillin thought aloud.

"What are you staring at?" Eighteen demanded, "You said I could eat whatever I wanted."

"Oh you're fine…" Krillin smiled, "It's just you have some ice cream on your upper lip." The android blushed a bit and wiped it off causing Krillin's smile to widen.

"Are you making fun of me?" Eighteen started to look annoyed.

"No. I'd never make fun of you. You just looked…well cute."

"Cute huh?" Eighteen deliberately hardened her expression until she saw Krillin looking like he was going to panic. Then she offered a small smile, "Thanks for the compliment. Are we ready to go?"

_"What a smile..." _Krillin thought after his brief nervousness,"Well we should probably pack some extra clothes because trips in space _do_ take a while," Krillin replied, "Fortunately I haven't unpacked from my hospital stay. Do you need any spare clothes?" he asked.

"Well…I've only got what I'm wearing. Guess we'll have to go shopping," Eighteen replied, "But you'll have to pay. I'm broke."

"Either that or borrow some outfits from Bulma," Krillin suggested.

"You're not serious," Eighteen said.

"Well…I'm a little broke myself right now. Hospital bills," Krillin said looking down.

"Fine I'll ask her when we get there," Eighteen sighed, "But when we get back to Earth, the first thing I'm going to do is increase my wardrobe."

"Alright then I'll grab my suitcase and we can be on our way," Krillin said. A few minutes later Eighteen and Krillin were riding an air car towards Capsule Corp. When they arrived, Krillin looked over at Eighteen, "Umm…before we knock I should warn you…Bulma doesn't know you're with me."

"What! I thought you said you were going to tell her so she can get Vegeta out of our way!" Eighteen said starting to look mad.

"Please hold on a moment. She is going to get Vegeta out of our way don't worry. I told her I was bringing a friend along she just didn't give me a chance to explain that it was you."

"Really? How hard is it to say 'I'm bringing Android 18 with me'?" Eighteen looked down at Krillin.

"With Bulma it's hard to get a word in edgewise when she's on a roll…oh speaking of…she's under the impression that…you're my girlfriend," Krillin said nervously.

Eighteen was taken aback, "I wonder if I should even bother to go on this trip now. We haven't even left yet and I'm already annoyed with you."

"Please…I made you a promise and I want to keep it," Krillin said, "I'll try to not disappoint or annoy you again."

"_He seems sincere," _Eighteen thought, _"I promised to give this a chance." _"Fine. Only if you explain to Bulma that I am _not_ your girlfriend," the android said sternly, "You're the closest thing I may have to friend but I'm not sure even _that's_ an appropriate term."

"Oh…I see…" Krillin replied looking down, "I'll just say you're an acquaintance I've decided to help then. Come on. Let's go knock on the door." As Krillin walked to the entrance of Bulma's home, Eighteen looked at him from behind and moved to hide herself from view.

"_I didn't say anything wrong. We aren't together and we're not friends…so why do I have this strange feeling in my stomach…"_ Eighteen thought.

Krillin had just knocked on Bulma's door, "Coming!" he heard the cheerful voice of his friend and then she opened the door, "Hi Krillin," Bulma said looking around, "So where is she? Your new girlfriend."

"Bulma…she's not my girlfriend…she's just…someone I wanted to help," Krillin said resigned.

"You're going to a lot of trouble for someone who's not your girlfriend," Bulma observed.

"Well she _is_ special," Krillin replied shyly, "Promise me you won't freak."

"Come on Krillin how bad can she be?" Bulma asked.

"Just promise," Krillin insisted.

"All right all right I promise," Bulma replied, "Come on out, no need to be shy." Of every possible combination that was running through her head this was one she didn't even consider, "Android 18?" Bulma looked like she was trying to contain her surprise and a little fright.

"Yo," the android waved at her.

"Android 18! Umm…hi…" Bulma replied nervously, "It's…a…surprise to see you again."

"Don't worry Bulma. She's not here to start trouble. It's just as I said on the phone. We just want to take a little trip is all," Krillin replied.

"Unfortunately I didn't realize that I'll need extra clothes for a trip like this," Eighteen said, "I'm going to need to borrow some."

"Oh…okay…I'm sure I've got stuff that will fit you. Come on it. Vegeta's out taking Trunks on a walk through the park. I told him he needs to spend at least an hour with him so you'll be safe." Krillin and Eighteen nodded and followed Bulma in.

"Krillin, why don't you wait in the living room while I help pick Eighteen out some clothes? My closet is girls' turf only."

"Umm…okay," Krillin replied and sat on the couch and turned on the TV.

"Follow me please," Bulma said to Eighteen. When they were in Bulma's room, she shut the door and turned her attention to the android, "All right Eighteen, what's the real deal here?" Bulma demanded.

"Excuse me?" Eighteen replied with a slightly dangerous tone.

"What are your _real_ intentions with Krillin? You just happened to see him and decide 'What the heck, I'll go on a voyage to outer space with him'? I don't buy it."

"For your information, it was _his_ idea to take me to space and only because I've been bored flying around doing nothing. If I _really_ wanted to start something you and your friends would've found out by now. My only _intention with Krillin is_ to let him take me on this trip and hopefully alleviate my boredom and maybe figure out what I want to do with myself!"

Bulma looked surprised. This certainly wasn't the answer she was expecting. _"Then again she was created to destroy. If she's no longer compelled to do that, maybe she really doesn't know what to do with herself…" _She then opened her closet and began to gather various outfits and placed them in a suitcase, "Okay I believe you," she said to the android, "However I should tell you something. Krillin cares for you. A lot. I can tell. Even if you don't think of him as anything besides your new interstellar chauffeur, he'll still care about you because that's the kind of guy he is."

Now instead of angry, the android started to look uncomfortable, "Why are you telling me this?" Eighteen asked.

"I have known Krillin for most of our lives," she continued packing some more clothes for the android, "He's always been a great friend to me…even if I haven't been the greatest friend to him. Heck looking back I've probably even been _abusive_ to him at times and I regret it. I've seen first hand what he's like when he really cares about someone and also what he's like when he's heartbroken. The last woman he loved he almost _married_ before he lost her and it took a while for him to get over her. If you don't like him like he likes you that's fine, but I'll be damned if I let anyone break his heart again! Just don't lead him on. Let him down gently. That's all I'm asking," Bulma said finishing the suitcase she prepared for the android. Then her expression hardened, "If I find out you've hurt Krillin, I _will_ send Vegeta to find you. Either that or I could always build another controller. That's not a threat. It's a promise."

Eighteen paled for a second at the way this mere human was talking. She had no doubt that Bulma could make good on her threats. Killing the scientist wouldn't do any good either, even if Eighteen didn't find the thought of harming someone who would be helpless against her repulsive. She simply nodded.

"Good. Then we understand each other," Bulma handed the suitcase to Eighteen.

"I can make Krillin understand how his feelings are…unfounded. I'll do what you ask," Eighteen replied.

"Alright," Bulma's face returned to her usual cheerful expression, "But remember what else I said. Krillin's a great guy. If you let him, he can be a great friend. Now let's get you two up in that space ship," Bulma smiled and led her back to Krillin.

"Okay I'm ready," Eighteen said to Krillin.

"Great!" Krillin grinned and got up.

"Follow me you two," Bulma smiled and led them out of the house and to the backyard where the large spherical ship was resting.

"This is it?" Eighteen asked.

"Yup! This is going to be so cool! You're in for a treat Eighteen," Krillin said, opening the hatch.

"Why don't you show her around before you launch?" Bulma suggested.

"Great idea," Krillin replied. They entered the ship and Krillin showed her the controls, the gravity machine, the kitchen (which was fully stocked), the closets, sleeping area, and bathroom.

"Wow. Bulma actually managed to make this ship as livable as a regular home _and_ in can travel through interstellar space."

"Yeah incredible isn't it. She reverse engineered the simple pod design that Saiyans used and mad all of this," Krillin replied, "So are you looking forward to this?"

"Sure. We can explore in luxury," Eighteen replied, "When do we take off?"

"When Bulma gives the OK," Krillin replied.

"Hey guys," Bulma called from outside the ship, "You're good to go except for one thing. Eighteen catch!" She tossed a smaller bag to the android, "Something I forgot to pack for you. Good luck you two and have fun!" She waved to them and closed the hatch. Krillin and Eighteen took their seats at the controls.

"Lifting off!" Krillin said. The ship shook and then took to the sky. Just then Vegeta was approaching the house, carrying Trunks and heard his ship taking off.

"Woman! What's going on!" he demanded.

"What? You said you weren't using it, so I lent it to Krillin," Bulma replied.

"Just because I wasn't using it doesn't mean I want to let Baldy borrow it," Vegeta grumbled.

"Oh be quiet Vegeta and bring Trunks inside. If you behave, I'll wear that nightgown you love later tonight."

Vegeta looked in thought, "Okay. You win. I'm coming," Vegeta replied. As he entered the house, the spaceship carrying Eighteen and Krillin was off for an extraordinary adventure…

(A/N: Well I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Next chapter Eighteen and Krillin begin their journey and start to try to get to know each other. I hope you'll look forward to it. Please leave me some reviews to let me know what you think.)


	4. Remembering Loved Ones

**Dragonball Z: Rediscovering Themselves**

**By: PhinalPhantasy**

**Chapter 3-Remembering Loved Ones**

(A/N: So sorry about the unacceptable waiting period for this chapter. I honestly hit a writer's block with it up to this point. I was worried things would go too slow in this part of the story and didn't want to continue it until I resolved that problem. However after rereading the previous chapters, I think I can finally work on this and make it good.)

(Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or its characters, just having fun writing about them.)

**The story so far: After Roshi and Oolong left Krillin to himself, Eighteen arrived and she and Krillin went to visit Bulma to tell her of their plans to travel in space. Bulma lent them Vegeta's spaceship as he wasn't using it, but also took some time alone to tell Eighteen that she should be open to Krillin's overtures of friendship...**

Eighteen didn't know what to expect when Krillin hit the control to start the spaceship. She sat calmly at the co-pilot's chair and when she just got comfortable, the force of the ship's lift off pressed against her whole body. Now she knew why normal spacesuits were so bulky. If she wasn't an android, the pressure might have done some serious damage to her body. As that wasn't the case, she let out a short yelp from surprise rather than pain.

"Eighteen, are you okay?" Krillin asked, looking over at his new traveling companion. He too felt the strong G-forces, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle, so he turned to Eighteen and gave her a reassuring smile, "It'll only last a few moments anyways."

"It doesn't hurt, it just feels strange is all," Eighteen replied, a little annoyed at herself for showing even that small hint of weakness, but Krillin just nodded in agreement and turned back to what he was doing. In a matter of minutes, the blue sky out the window was replaced by a black void filled with stars and then Eighteen felt herself starting to float out of her chair.

"One moment," Krillin said and floated over to the gravity machine and set it for the standard 1G of Earth. The machine quickly activated and their feet were once again on the floor.

"So Eighteen, why don't you take a look out the window and see the Earth from a new point of view," Krillin invited. Eighteen shrugged and peered out the window and saw that they were already starting to get further away. She could now see the whole Earth at once.

"_So this is the world that Krillin loves to protect so much. I can't even see the larger cities from up here. It just looks so…natural like this. Sixteen would've loved to see this," _Eighteen thought as she stared at the large blue-green sphere. Her expression saddened slightly. Krillin however was smiling at seeing the Earth in this way.

"It's quite a sight isn't it?" Krillin commented, "Last time I went out into space, I didn't really take the time to appreciate the little things like this."

"I suppose it can be called…beautiful," Eighteen replied, but still looking sad.

"What is it?" Krillin thought.

"It's nothing. Let's just move on," Eighteen said.

"Come on. It's just you, me, and the stars. Anything that is said or done here stays between us," Krillin insisted, "That's why I came. So you won't have to go it alone."

"As I recall your exact words were 'you'll need someone who knows how the ship works and where another world would be along with someone familiar of the dangers of space,'" Eighteen replied.

"Well that's part of it, but the main reason is I didn't want you to be alone anymore," Krillin replied, "You said you were bored, but I think you're also lonely."

"How **dare** you!" Eighteen glared at Krillin, "I am not weak like that! I don't need anyone!" she moved towards the short human with an angry look in her eye.

"You're not weak," Krillin countered, "You're the strongest woman I know, but I also know that until now, you've never really been alone! Sixteen or Seventeen were always with you up until now and now that they're gone, you're lost. It's not weakness to care about the only friend and family you ever had!"

Eighteen was taken aback at Krillin's words. Yes she cared a great deal about her twin and their large friend. Not only were they gone, she didn't know what ever happened to them, _"I can't afford to be this weak though…why is my guard suddenly going down! If I'm not careful I'll tell him __everything!__ I need to do something before I get too emotional!" _"Then tell me Krillin…if caring isn't weakness…why is it that you've been so weak lately? Or is it that you don't care like everyone thinks you do?"

Now it was Krillin's turn to be taken aback. It was true that Goku's death hit him really hard and he hasn't even tried since then. The android was right, he had gotten weaker, _"How can I explain to her how my loved ones gave me strength when I've clearly lost that strength myself?" _he wondered to himself. He sighed, "I…I do care, that has never been a lie…but you're right, I've been very weak and pathetic lately, and it is because I've lost my best friend, but caring is also a strength. I know I sound confusing or hypocritical right now. I don't know how to properly explain it. I'm sorry."

"That's why we're going on this trip isn't it? The world is too confusing for us right now, so we need to step away from it and figure out the answers ourselves," Eighteen concluded.

"I agree," Krillin replied, "But remember Eighteen, you're not alone on this journey. I'm here. I may not have the answers, but at least I can help you express your questions."

"Well…there is one straight answer I hope you can give me," Eighteen began still thinking about the ones she lost, "What happened to Sixteen. He was alive when I got absorbed by Cell but wasn't there when I regained consciousness after he spit me out. Did Cell get him?"

Krillin sighed and looked down at the floor, "Yes…sadly Cell killed him. But he didn't go down easily. He actually joined our side to help us fight against him and he was one of the strongest fighters on our side. The problem was Bulma didn't completely trust him and disabled his self-destruct ability without letting him know it. So when Sixteen fought Cell, Sixteen was trying for a chance to take him out with it and by the look on Cell's face, I think it would've worked. When the self-destruct failed, Cell immediately tore Sixteen apart…but his head was still alive. With his last few moments, he convinced Gohan to fight Cell with all of his might when Gohan was afraid of his own power. It's really thanks to Sixteen that Cell was defeated. I don't think Gohan would've gone all out without Sixteen's encouragement and sacrifice."

"I see," Eighteen said, putting her hand over her heart and closing her eyes, "Krillin. I'm going into the bedroom for a while. Unless it's important, I don't want to be bothered."

"No problem," Krillin replied, "I'll just keep minding the ship then." He turned around and saw her walk towards the bedroom and when it shut he turned back to his controls, _"Man I wish she would let me hold her right now. She looks like she could use it. Wake up Krillin, she'll never let you do a thing like that! It's taking all she is to even grieve in solitude. You should be glad she's willing to do this much. Just think of another way to help her!"_

Eighteen was alone in one of the two small beds provided on the ship and she laid face down on it, thinking of what Krillin had just revealed, _"Sixteen died fighting for everyone. He could've won if it wasn't for that Bulma woman. No that doesn't matter. Either way he would've died. Either way his sacrifice would have saved the world. Why was I the only one of us that lived? Pure luck from that punch from Gohan! I didn't deserve such a lucky break. I've done terrible things and yet I'm alive. Sixteen didn't try to hurt anyone other than Cell and that was for good reason and yet he died. It's not fair. He should've lived… I'm so sorry my friend…so sorry that I wasn't able to help you. Seventeen…my brother I'm sorry you're gone too…I need you both…"_ She then felt something wet drip down her face. Eighteen was surprised at first, but couldn't stop the tears from flowing so she just let them come, _"As long as Krillin doesn't see me like this I should be fine…"_

It was a few hours later when Eighteen woke up to hear a knock at the door. _"Funny. I didn't realize I was even asleep."_ "I thought I asked not to be disturbed," she called out.

"I know, but it's been over five hours. I thought you might want to eat," Krillin replied, "If not, I'll leave you alone again."

"Actually…I think I should eat," Eighteen replied getting up and opening the door. Krillin had a table set up with a chicken dinner ready to serve.

He tried to mask his surprise at the android's appearance now. Her lovely face was red from crying and her hair disheveled. _"Don't say anything idiot!" _he told himself as he pulled out a chair for her, he tried to smile, "I hope you like. I don't know what your tastes are, but I thought chicken would be safe."

"I think I can be willing to try this," Eighteen replied sitting down and getting her utensils ready. Krillin sat on the opposite side and he began to serve out the meal.

"I've been thinking on where we should go on our little space voyage," Krillin said, taking a bite of a drumstick, "Would you like to go to Namek?"

"Namek…that's Piccolo's homeworld right?" Eighteen replied, remembering all the data on the Z fighters Gero programmed into her.

"Yes that's right," Krillin smiled, "It's a very beautiful place and the inhabitants are nice, but it's also nothing like Earth there. A great vacation spot!" he declared.

"Sounds interesting. What's the catch?" Eighteen asked.

"Well, if you want, there are Dragonballs on Namek. We could see if the Namekians will allow us to search for them. Then you can get any three wishes from their dragon, Porunga!"

"What?" Eighteen dropped her fork and knife, "You'd just let me use Dragonballs like that? What for?"

"Well back on Earth, when we asked Shenron to revive everyone who was killed by Cell, Sixteen and Seventeen were not among them for some reason. Maybe it's because they were androids, I don't know. But Porunga works on different rules than Shenron. Maybe he'd be able to bring them back for you! What do you think?"

Eighteen was shocked by Krillin's offer, "You'd help me get them back? After all I've done?"

"You haven't done anything bad in a long time. I think you deserve a second chance. So do Sixteen and Seventeen. I know Sixteen won't hurt anyone if he's revived, and I'm sure you can convince Seventeen to stop being evil. You're his sister he'd listen to you. You can have a family again," Krillin encouraged.

"That's…a very tempting offer. But what if it doesn't work? What do I do then?" Eighteen pointed out.

"Hmm…well I'm sure by the time we gather them all, you can think of some other wishes you may want. Something else that will make you happy," Krillin replied.

"And what do you get out of this?" Eighteen asked.

"Well, the journey to get the Dragonballs can possibly be dangerous," Krillin thought, "Maybe this will be a good chance for me to get my groove back. But even if that doesn't happen, I'll be satisfied by helping out someone I care about. Maybe gain a friend," he looked at Eighteen hopefully.

"Alright…I guess this chance is too good to pass up. Explore a new world and possibly get the two people I care about most in this world back. Let's do this Krillin," Eighteen started to cheer up.

"Okay. We can set the course after we're done with dinner," he agreed, _"Wow, I think I finally did something right! Eighteen's starting to cheer up and it's contagious. I only hope we can pull this off."_

"I can live with that," Eighteen concurred, _"Wow. He really is different, going through this much trouble for me. I can hardly believe it, but Krillin hasn't lied to me yet. I don't know if we can do this or not, but I think I'll have the strength to try."_

(A/N: Well I hope you enjoyed that chapter. Leave me some reviews to let me know what you think. I'm sorry if this one was a little slow, I'm just setting the stage for what I hope will be a good romance and action story.)


	5. Learning to Trust

**Dragonball Z: Rediscovering Themselves**

**By: PhinalPhantasy**

**Chapter 4—Learning to Trust**

(A/N: Man it's been too too long since I've updated this one. I'm sure many out there thought I had abandoned this story, but don't worry it's not over for it yet. I hope everyone enjoys this newest installment.)

(Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or its characters, just having fun writing about them.)

**The story so far: As they start their journey, Krillin and Eighteen each began to learn a bit about the other, Krillin learning how Eighteen, as strong as she is, also had a caring side when it came to her brother and their friend. She believed it to be a weakness but Krillin insisted it was a strength, even though it seemed to Eighteen that Krillin's own devotion to his friends hasn't given him the strength it used to. Eighteen also learned of Sixteen's fate and after which desired time alone, feeling guilty that she was the only surviving android. Krillin then provided dinner in an attempt to cheer her up and realizing she missed her own family, he suggested they go to New Namek to gather the Dragonballs to revive them…**

When dinner was finished, Krillin decided to do the dishes on his own, _"No way would I ask Eighteen to do the dishes, don't want her to think I'm trying to make her my housekeeper, not that I mind doing this simple chore for her anyways." _As he wiped one dish and prepared to dry it, it was snatched from his hands by the lovely android who had a dish cloth in her hands and dried it herself.

"Eighteen?" Krillin asked.

"What? You did the cooking, least I could do is help clean up the mess I made eating. No need to make a big deal out of it," Eighteen replied.

"Well…you didn't make a mess, you ate like a lady," Krillin smiled softly as he washed the next plate.

"Thank you, I always try to present myself as such," she replied, already drying it. Since it was only the two of them, it didn't take them long to finish the cleanup.

"So now what do we do? I hope the rest of the day won't be boring," Eighteen said.

"How about you take a turn at the controls," Krillin suggested, "Learning to fly this puppy will be a lot of fun, even better than learning to drive."

"Okay that does sound good," Eighteen agreed. Grinning boyishly, Krillin led his companion to the pilot's chair. Right now the console indicated they were on auto pilot, on course for New Namek, but had plenty of extra fuel if they wanted to take a scenic route.

"Okay first thing we need to do is switch her over to manual," Krillin explained, showing the appropriate controls for that. When Eighteen did as instructed, the computer beeped a few times and suddenly a panel opened up and what looked like a steering wheel emerged and pedals came up from the floor by the android's feet.

"Oh this should be good," Eighteen grinned and grabbed the wheel, veering it to the right sharply which caused the ship to accelerate towards the upper right

"WHOA!" Krillin exclaimed as he lost his balance and slid down the floor a bit.

"Sorry bout that," Eighteen peered at Krillin, "Guess this thing's sensitive."

"Yeah, good thing there's a whole lot of nothing out here or we may be in trouble," Krillin joked.

"Well let's see about that," Eighteen smirked and turned the wheel to the left, causing the ship to go to the upper left just as Krillin got back up on his feet, but this time the android was careful to make sure that she didn't do it too sharply, _"Though it was kind of funny earlier."_ "So the wheel makes us go up and to whatever direction we steer, how do we turn directions towards 'down' or if we want to stay pretty much in the same plane?" she asked.

"That lever over there, it's pointing straight up. Just move it towards the up or down direction you want to go when you steer it," Krillin replied.

"Okay," Eighteen nodded and then noticed the screens to either side of her, "This is what's outside the ship?" Krillin looked over and nodded.

"What's immediately around us. We can look farther away though," he said and showed her the controls to adjust the viewers. They noticed a colorful nebula not too far off their course.

"This looks interesting," Eighteen noted, "Let's check it out."

"Okay just be careful, we don't know what's in there," Krillin reminded her. She nodded and then adjusted the ship's heading towards the beautiful cloud, then hit the accelerator. Krillin moved to one of the windows to look out as they got closer.

"You don't want to stay here just in case?" Eighteen asked.

"Nah, you're doing a good job. I trust you," Krillin replied, "We're almost there, it looks awesome already."

"Yeah I can see it from these screens," Eighteen agreed. Soon they weren't just watching the clouds of space gas from afar, they were flying through it and the view was a mixture of colors ranging from bright blue to deep purple, all swirling around each other at various speeds.

"This is pretty cool," Eighteen acknowledged, "Let's go deeper in," she smiled like a child and flew the ship closer to one of the swirls. Suddenly an alarm sounded, "What'd I do?" Krillin rushed to the pilot's area.

"UH OH! Swerve right!" he said quickly. When Eighteen did as instructed, they both saw an asteroid barely miss their ship, "That was a close one. Looks like there's more than pretty colors here."

"Guess that would be one of the 'hazards of space' you warned me about," Eighteen said.

"Yeah…hey there's more on the radar," Krillin pointed out, "We better be careful flying now."

"Well now that I know what to look for," Eighteen smiled, "I think we can have some fun with this."

"What do you mean?" Krillin asked.

"Just hang on to your seat and you'll find out how good android reflexes really are!" with that she pushed the ships engines to accelerate at an incredible rate. Krillin almost lost his balance again, but managed to keep to his feet and moved to the nearest window.

"Umm…Eighteen…we're headed right for that asteroid," Krillin said a little nervously.

"I see it," she replied with the calmness Krillin came to expect from her, but not a situation like this. Just as it looked like they were about to cut their journey short, she veered sharply to the right causing the ship to circle the obstacle before letting the gravity of the asteroid launch them towards another section of the nebula.

"WHOA! That was close!" he breathed a sigh of relief.

"But fun," Eighteen smirked, "Let's do it again, here's a small group of them. She then maneuvered the ship in a figure 8 orbit around two asteroids, the constant turns began to make Krillin dizzy until he righted himself as the daredevil android flew off towards another cluster, "Still with me?" she asked.

"Yeah," Krillin replied.

"Now that you made it again, maybe you can enjoy this instead of freaking out?" she suggested.

"Huh…I guess you're right. Roller coasters or even our own high-speed flying for that matter doesn't compare to this," Krillin smiled.

"That's the spirit," Eighteen replied, "Here they come!" as Krillin looked out the window, this time smiling in anticipation as to the crazy stunt the android was going to pull off. On the radar it looked like several asteroids were going to buzz by each other in the next few minutes. With a determined look, Eighteen flew right towards that cluster, swerving around the first so close Krillin could see the tiny craters on it right outside the window. The ship then ducked underneath the next to give them the extra speed to catapult over the third. Eighteen then actually turned the ship around to fly between the last two and pulled away when the asteroids they were playing around with crashed into each other, sending rocky debris in all directions. The alarm went off as some larger pieces headed to their ship, but Eighteen's hands were a blur as she dodged them left, right, up, and down. Only a few small pieces managed to touch the ship, not enough to damage it.

"So how was that?" she asked. Krillin was breathing heavily at her question, his heart raced at the death defying stunts she pulled off, "Did I overdo it?" she asked a little worried, but that soon faded as Krillin turned around and faced her with a big grin.

"**That was great!"** he shouted for joy, jumping in the air with his fist pumped.

"Yeah, that was the most fun I've had in a long long time," Eighteen chuckled for a few seconds then said softly, "Thank you."

"Huh? For what?" Krillin said, taken aback at even this small gesture of gratitude from her.

"For convincing me to go on this trip with you; for trusting me enough to let me go nuts at the controls and for giving me the first hint of feeling alive I've had in a while," Eighteen replied.

"The feeling's mutual, believe me," Krillin smiled back, "Thank you for trusting me enough to come with me alone to face these unknown dangers together. And **you're **the one who gave **me **a big thrill back there. I think I've even gotten some of my courage back thanks to your little stunt."

"Really? How much?" Eighteen asked out of curiosity.

"Well not enough to…" then they heard the alarm beeping and both he and Eighteen rushed to the controls, "Not enough to try some kind of stunt on **that!" **Ahead of their ship was the largest hunk of rock yet, it had to be at least a mile across.

"You're right, play time is over," Eighteen said, turning the ship sharply to try to avoid it, but even though it seemed that the large asteroid was coming slowly, in reality it was just far away. Eighteen looked at her radar and it seemed that no matter how sharply the ship veered, it would strike the very edge of the asteroid, "it's no good. We can't turn around and we can't go over or under either! We have 5 minutes to decide how we're going out!"

"Keep the ship veering on auto pilot I have a plan!" Krillin said, stripping to his boxers, then grabbing his space suit and just put it on over his own clothes, "Get dressed Eighteen we have a ship to save!" The android nodded and found the spacesuit with her own name on it and as Krillin was facing the airlock, not even looking her way, she also disrobed quickly to her undergarments and put on her spacesuit, then flew rather than ran towards her companion.

"When I give the word, we're going to fire a ki blast we can out this side airlock to give the ship an extra boost, don't make it too strong, we don't want to blow it up, that'll make things worse!," Krillin instructed, turning on the oxygen supply

"What about explosive decompression?" Eighteen asked with worry, also turning on her O2 supply, "Won't we get sucked out into space?"

"No time to talk, just trust me!" Krillin replied, opening the airlock. As the atmosphere rushed out into the void, the ships two passengers stood their ground with surprising ease, "Get ready!" Eighteen heard Krillin say over her helmet's radio, "NOW!" Simultaneously, the two shot out thick beams of energy towards the nearby asteroid, pressing against it, causing Krillin and Eighteen to be pushed back to the center of the ship, but then they planted their feet firmly, not stopping their attack and giving the energy one last burst before the ship gained enough thrust to be pushed aside safely. Both of them were breathing heavily, relieved to still be alive and they just smiled and reached out towards each other, instinctively embracing.

"That…that…that was…" Eighteen started.

"**Not **fun…" Krillin finished. Eighteen just nodded her agreement, "We better get out of here."

"Go ahead and take the controls, I'll get the ship repressurized," Krillin said. Once that was done and they were safely out of the nebula on their way to New Namek once again, they removed their helmets.

"Eighteen?" Krillin looked towards her.

"Yes?" she asked.

"Thank you," Krillin said, "For trusting **me** this time."

Eighteen just shrugged, "You have the experience in this sort of thing; I don't."

"Actually," Krillin replied nervously, "I never did that before…Goku had to get himself out of a similar situation once…only he almost crashed into a **star!"**

"Does he always have to out do you?" Eighteen joked, but then caught herself, worrying she might have hit a sore spot with Krillin, but he just laughed.

"Yeah everything with him was a competition…but I don't think he had a copilot as awesome as you and he didn't get to have fun dodging asteroids like that," Krillin said.

"Yeah that was fun…but I don't think we should do that again," Eighteen replied, "One near-heart attack per vacation is enough for me thank you very much."

"I hear ya," Krillin replied, "And Eighteen…You do realize we just hugged back there didn't you?" he smiled softly.

"That was…" Eighteen blushed heavily, "that was…that was…okay I'll admit…that was nice…but don't expect it to happen again anytime soon," she replied.

"'Not soon', doesn't mean 'never,'" Krillin pointed out cheerfully.

"No. No it doesn't," Eighteen recovered from her blush and smirked back at her companion who was shocked into his mouth hanging open, but Eighteen was equally surprised at how quickly that response came. Still smirking, she walked by and put her thumb on his chin and gently lifted it to close his mouth for him. Her fingers barely brushed his lips as she pulled away, "Please excuse me…I think I'll need a bath after all that excitement. I'd appreciate it if you keep the ship nice and steady for me while I do so."

"Uh huh," Krillin replied, still overwhelmed by the fact that he got to hold the lovely android, the lovely woman, in his arms for even a moment and that she hinted that it could happen again.

(A/N: Well I hope that little diversion was enjoyable for all. Reviews, as always, are very welcome. Next chapter Krillin and Eighteen arrive on New Namek. What challenges will await them there?)


	6. Arrival on New Namek

**Dragonball Z: Rediscovering Themselves**

**By: PhinalPhantasy**

**Chapter 5 Arrival on New Namek**

(A/N: Man it's been too too long since I've updated this one. I'm sure many out there thought I had abandoned this story, but don't worry it's not over for it yet. I hope everyone enjoys this newest installment. Please leave your reviews letting me know what you thought.)

(Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or its characters, just having fun writing about them.)

**The story so far: Krillin and Eighteen were traveling to New Namek on their impromptu vacation and Krillin decided to give Eighteen some flying lessons. The Android took to the controls easily and sent their ship on a detour to a beautiful nebula…beautiful but filled with deadly asteroids! After making several daredevil stunts, it looked like they bit off more than they could chew when an exceptionally large asteroid came at them. Some quick thinking by Krillin, using their Ki blasts to give their ship extra thrust, allowed them to escape unharmed. Relieved, they instinctively embraced each other, and it seemed that Eighteen really didn't mind to Krillin's pleasant surprise. Now their journey towards New Namek is about to end and the real journey is about to start…**

"Alright Eighteen, we're almost ready to make our landing," Krillin smiled at his traveling companion.

"So this is New Namek…Piccolo's race lives here…" the Android commented looking out the window at the lush green world.

"Yeah, the Namekians are great! They're a very friendly people," Krillin said assuringly.

"Piccolo isn't very friendly," Eighteen pointed out.

"Well he's an exception, but even still I do consider him my friend at least," Krillin replied, standing next to her and also admiring the view, both of the planet, and of the lovely woman, "and you too, that is, if it's okay with you," he added quickly, remembering her initial standoffish attitude towards him only a few days ago.

"Hmm…" Eighteen let out a small smile, "Sure, why not. You'll be the only person I know when we get there, so I guess I'll have to learn to depend on you…but only a little bit," she replied.

Krillin smiled in reply, "That's fine by me. We better get strapped in for the landing. I hope you're looking forward to this."

"I have been. I hope I won't be disappointed though," Eighteen replied. The two sat down and put on their seatbelts and prepared to land, "Where exactly on the plane are we landing?" she asked.

"There's an open area not too far from one of the villages. We'll go there," Krillin said finding such a location easily.

"Hope you can land this thing smoothly," Eighteen grinned as Krillin worked the controls. It didn't take long to land safely. The android looked out the window to see a green sky.

"Nice landing huh?" Krillin remarked, "Well time to disembark and see what the natives think."

"Wait…you didn't let the Namekians know we were coming?" Eighteen looked a little concerned and annoyed.

"Umm…whoops…I guess that was a mistake on my part," Krillin rubbed his head nervously, "no sense in getting too upset over it though, they do know and trust me," he then got up out of his chair and opened the main hatch, Eighteen not too far behind him.

"So which way to the village?" Eighteen asked.

"About five miles thata way!" Krillin pointed. The two of them flew casually towards their destination side by side.

"Since they aren't expecting us, what kind of reception are we likely to get?" Eighteen asked.

"Probably a very cautious one," Krillin admitted sadly, "After all, the last aliens to visit their world nearly caused their extinction."

"Yeah, not telling them about us coming was a bad idea," Eighteen commented as a group of three Namekians approached them midway

"Halt! What is your purpose here?" the lead Namekian asked as the android and human stopped their flight and hovered in place.

"Hi," Krillin greeted warmly, "I don't know if we've me, but, I'm Krillin, from Earth. I'm one of the people who helped in the fight against Frieza. Nail, Dende, and Guru were friends of mine."

"Ah yes. I'm sure Elder Moori will want to see you, though we don't recognize your companion," the Namekian replied.

"Well, this is my first time here," Eighteen admitted.

"Please follow us," the Namekian instructed. They politely followed their escorts and found their friend, who was actually playing golf in a nearby field. The sight caused Eighteen's eyes to widen in surprise.

"Didn't expect to see golf on an alien planet," she commented as they landed.

"Elder Moori," the Namekians greeted him, "you have guests."

"Wait! I'm concentrating," Moori said as he tapped the ball into the Eighteenth hole. "Yes made it," he then turned to his visitors, "Ah friends from Earth. Tell Dr. Briefs thanks for teaching me this game. It's a great way to meditate and it's become quite popular with our people."

Krillin laughed, "Sure thing, Elder."

"So what brings you to our world," Moori asked as he put his club away and turned to them, "I hope another disaster hasn't hit Earth," he said with worry.

"Well nothing we couldn't handle on our own. This is a more social visit," Krillin explained, "This is my friend Android Eighteen. We came because I wanted to show her another world."  
"I see," Moori replied, "Well I hope you enjoy your visit. We don't have much, but we are wiling to show you our best hospitality," he said to the young android.

"Thank you…" Eighteen then gave Krillin a gently nudge, "What about the other reason we're here."

"Ah yes…the Dragonballs," Krillin added, "We were wondering if we could ask you to summon Porunga for us."

"But you just said that everything was fine on Earth," Moori frowned at Krillin, "For what reason do you need the Dragonballs?"

"It's personal…two people very important to me were killed by a monster named Cell."

"Ah I see, and Shenron can't revive them?" Moori asked in surprise.

"No, we tried," Krillin replied, "I think it's because they are both Androids like Eighteen here. We were hoping since Porunga works on different rules, maybe he can pull it off."

"Well as we've never run into Andorids before now, I'm not sure. I'm having a hard time sensing your friend's intentions. What exactly _is_ an Android?"

"I'm mostly a machine that used to be a human," Eighteen replied, "Does that help?"

"No wonder I can't sense her. Well I'm sorry about you friends," Moori said, "and I know Krillin is vouching for you, but I'm afraid I can't allow someone to use the Dragonballs that hasn't earned the trust of the Namekian people."

"I see. I guess this was a waste of time," Eighteen muttered, "Thanks for nothing. Take me home Krillin," she said turning around.

"Wait! Eighteen!" Krillin looked at the Android, then gave a pleading glace towards the Namekian elder and mouthed, "please."

"Eighteen. I did not say I would not give you a chance to _earn_ our trust." Moori countered, stopping the Android from leaving.

"And how would I go about doing that?" she asked.

"Well, Krillin and his friends proved themselves heroes to us on their first visit to our planet where they defended us against Frieza's forces at great sacrifice to themselves."

"Well I hope I don't have to wait for another alien dictator to show up before I can prove myself," Eighteen replied.

"Of course not," Moori replied, "That would put our whole world at risk. There are other ways to prove your qualities. Please come with me," he gestured towards the largest hut in the village, the two travelers close behind. Moori then opened a door to what appeared to lead into a basement, but when they arrived, the room looked a lot larger, almost the size of the entire village. It was very dark, several torches provided a soft glow and in the center was what looked like a spell circle and a gigantic pendulum swung back and forth above it.

"A…a pendulum room?" Krillin was astonished.

"So you're familiar with this," Moori said, also slightly surprised at Krillin's recognition.

"Yeah…Kami had one on his home, the Lookout. I used it to train once," Krillin said.

"We also use it for training and meditative purposes," Moori nodded, "It can easily be used as a method of testing your virtue."

"What does it do?" Eighteen asked.

"It can transport your mind to any point in time and space," Krillin explained, "You can meet and train with past masters, or battle villains from ages ago for training."

"Ours can do that of course," Moori nodded, "but there is another way of training that is much more…personal. Ours can also create a separate reality that doesn't exist for anyone else but the users. One that will test you mentally, physically, and emotionally, one that will make you face the best and worst parts of yourself. If you can succeed in the trials presented by your own self…then I believe you will be worthy enough to try to revive your friends with our help."

"You're telling me this room can do all that?" Eighteen said skeptically.

"Believe someone who's been through it once before. It's very real and you'll feel everything you experience. It will change you."

"I don't think I _can_ be changed any more than I have been," Eighteen replied, "And if this is all just me I'm facing, I'm sure I can handle it. I'll do it."

"Wow aren't you the confident one," Moori laughed, "Go ahead then, be my guest," he gestured to the center of the room. Eighteen gave Krillin her smirk before stepping towards it.

"Wait! I'm coming with you," Krilin said.

"You've already proven yourself, you don't have to again," Moori pointed out.

"Yes I do. I have something to prove to myself," Krillin repied, "That's why I'm here. I've lost something since the last time we met."

"You do realize if you go together, the reality you'll emerge in will be based on both of your true selves."

Eighteen shrugged, "We started on this journey together; we might as well continue it that way."

"Wow Eighteen, you're not at all concerned that this will bare your heart and soul to me," Krillin teased.

"I've got nothing to hide," Eighteen replied, "It's not like I have anything to be embarrassed about…I'd be more worried about what you've got hidden away."

"Hey I'm a good guy," Krillin said.

"I'm sure some of your master's bad habits have rubbed off," the Android teased back causing Krillin to blush slightly.

"Well…we better get started," he replied hastily.

"Very well," Moori said. Please stand in the center of the circle. When they did as instructed, the pendulum swung back and forth above their heads and what looked like lightning was passing from it to the travelers as the pendulum reached its lowest point over and over. This was unexpected to Eighteen who unconsciously reached for Krillin's hand and he took it, looking back at her, surprised at the show of vulnerability, but before he could comment, they were overcome by a flash of light.

(A/N: Well I hope you enjoyed this one. I know this was kind of short, but it was meant mostly as a transition to the start of their main adventure together. What dangers will the two of them face together, and will they be able to overcome them?)

(A/N 2: I also have a new poll up on my profile. If you have the chance, please take a look)


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